Opening range
The opening range is the high and low of the first minutes of a trading session, commonly 5, 15 or 30 minutes, frozen once the window closes and projected for the rest of the session. It is the day trader's short-window counterpart to the Market Profile initial balance.
Senzoukria · Glossary · Updated September 2026
Definition
Choose a window at the start of the session. The highest high and the lowest low of the bars that start inside that window form the opening range (OR). Once the window is over, the two levels no longer change; they are drawn forward as references for the rest of the session. The window is a choice: 5 minutes catches the opening print, 15 minutes is a common index-futures setting, 30 or 60 minutes approach the initial balance.
- The OR is a range, not a prediction; the interesting information is how price behaves relative to it afterwards.
- The midpoint of the range is sometimes drawn as a third line.
- On CME futures the session anchor is 17:00 Chicago time unless the trader measures from the RTH open.
How it is traded and read
- Opening range breakout: price leaves the range and is accepted outside it. The size of the OR relative to typical daily ranges sets expectations for the move.
- Failed breakout: price pokes outside and returns inside the range; the opposite edge becomes the next reference.
- Confirm with orderflow at the edge: a breakout on stacked imbalances and rising cumulative delta reads differently from one that is absorbed.
- The OR of a session with a gap open sits away from yesterday's value; the relationship between the two frames the day.
In Senzoukria
Two overlays cover the concept. 'Opening Range' ('Structure & sessions') draws the high and low of the first N minutes with 'Duration (min)' selectable among 5, 15, 30 and 60, 15 by default, frozen after the window and projected to the end of the session. 'Opening Range Bands' ('VWAP & bands') draws the high and low of each session's opening window as a band with the range midpoint as its basis; it has its own 'Duration (min)' setting, 30 by default and adjustable from 1 to 480, and it is drawn only from the first bar after the window, so a level meant to be fixed never moves while it forms. Both leave a session empty when no bar falls inside the window, for example when history was loaded after the open. The catalogue notes explicitly that this is distinct from the 60-minute 'Initial Balance' overlay.
Common mistakes
- Drawing the OR while the window is still open and reacting to a level that is about to move.
- Using a window that is shorter than the chart timeframe. The window keeps every bar that starts inside it, and a bar contributes its whole range, so a 15-minute OR built from 30-minute bars silently becomes a 30-minute range.
- Comparing OR breakouts across instruments without accounting for the very different range sizes.
Related
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Frequently asked questions
- Which opening range duration should I use?
- It depends on the instrument and the plan. Five minutes reacts to the opening auction only; fifteen minutes is common on index futures; thirty and sixty minutes overlap with the initial balance. Senzoukria offers all four in the 'Opening Range' overlay so the choice can be tested on your own history.
- How is the opening range different from the initial balance?
- The initial balance is a Market Profile convention: the first hour, two 30-minute brackets. The opening range is a shorter, freely chosen window used by day traders. In Senzoukria they are separate overlays with separate settings, and the IB has its own extension levels.
- Does the opening range exist on crypto?
- Only relative to a session boundary, since crypto trades continuously. Senzoukria splits crypto sessions at 00:00 UTC, so on Binance data both overlays measure the first minutes after midnight UTC; the anchor is not a setting of the overlays. The range is only meaningful if that boundary matches the way you read the market.